Why degrees DO pay: Graduates earn £12k more a year than those who haven't gone to university

Degree of separation: Female graduates earn around a fifth less than their male counterparts

Graduates earned £12,000 a year more on average over the past decade than those without a
degree, official figures suggest.

Typically,
salaries for graduates aged 22 to 64 stood at £30,000 compared with £18,000 for
non-graduates, according to data from the Office For National
Statistics (ONS).

The figures, taken from the Labour Force Survey, show that earnings were around
£15,000 for 22-year-olds - regardless of whether or not they had a degree.

For
non-graduates, earnings increased every year until the age of 30 before
levelling off and peaking at £19,400 at 34.

Graduates saw their earnings increase faster, and over a longer period of time. Their
income levelled off around the age of 35 and peaked at 51 at £34,500.

ONS statistician Jamie Jenkins said: 'This
analysis shows there is a big difference between average earnings for graduates
and non-graduates.

'We
also see a big difference based on age, with graduates' earnings not
peaking until they are in their early 50s. After this age, average wages
decreased, as the higher earners leave the labour market earlier.'

The
statistics also reveal that gender differences in earnings remain.

Over the
past decade, male graduates could expect to earn 20 per cent more than their female
peers. For those without a degree this gender gap was 23 per cent, in favour of men.